Settlement dynamics P2

Question 1

Gradient analysis of cities in HICs over time shows…

Answer 1

-that there is an initial rise and later decline in density of the central area.

-that there is an outwards spread of population and a consequent reduction in the overall density gradient overtime.

Question 1

What is the general trend of the urban density gradient?

Answer 1

For most cities densities fall with increasing distance from the centre.

Question 2

Gradient analysis of cities in LICSs and MICs over time shows…

Answer 2

-that there is a continuing increase in central area densities and the consequent maintenance of fairly stable gradients as the urban areas.

Question 3

What are the factors that affect the location of urban activities?

Answer 3

-Market forces - the demand and supply of land in various locations dictates its price.

-Local or central government planning decisions - planners can overrule market forces where they consider it necessary for public goods. Governments may be able decide, within certain constraints, where the location of public housing, open spaces, schools and hospitals should be.

Question 4

What does the process of deindustrialisation involve?

Answer 4

The process of deindustrialisation involves the filtering down manufacturing industry from HICs to MICs. This has resulted in many factory closures in more affluent countries.

Question 5

What term is commonly used to refer to cities in HICs?

Answer 5

Post-industrial cities

Question 6

The explanation for the inner-city decline of manufacturing industry lies largely in…

Answer 6

constrained location theory.

Question 7

What does constrained location theory identify?

Answer 7

Constrained location theory identifies the problems encountered by manufacturing firms in congested cities, particularly in inner cities.

Question 8

What are the problems encountered by manufacturing firms in congested cities?

(IB)

Answer 8

The industrial buildings of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, mostly multi-storey, are generally unsuitable for modern manufacturing, which has preference for a single story layout.

Question 9

What are the problems encountered by manufacturing firms in congested cities?

(IN)

Answer 9

The intensive nature of land use usually results in manufacturing sites being hemmed in by other land users, thus preventing on-site expansion.

Question 10

What are the problems encountered by manufacturing firms in congested cities?

(LOER)

Answer 10

Where larger sites are available, the lack of environmental regulations in earlier times has often resulted in high levels of contamination. In such situation, reclamation is very costly and may not be an economically viable choice for manufacturing firms.

Question 11

What are the problems encountered by manufacturing firms in congested cities?

(C)

Answer 11

The high levels of competition for land in urban areas has continuously pushed up prices to prohibitive levels for manufacturing industry in many towns and cities.

Question 12

What are the problems encountered by manufacturing firms in inner cities?

(UPP)

Answer 12

Urban-planning policies in the form of huge slum-clearance schemes of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s meant than factories located in slum-housing areas were frequently demolished to.

Question 13

What are the problems encountered by manufacturing firms in inner cities?

(EOD)

Answer 13

Before the era of decline, important inter-firm linkages had been been built up in inner-city areas. As these links were steadily broke, the locational raison d’etre of the remaining inner city areas had gradually evaporated.

Question 14

How has the location and characteristics of retailing changed in cities over the recent decades?

Answer 14

As urban areas increase in population size and urban sprawl occurs, more people find themselves a considerable distance from the CBD. Suburban retail and business centres develop to satisfy this demand. Furthermore, the rise in internet shopping and home delivery services may threaten the purpose of retailing in cities.

Question 15

How have the location of health services changed?

Answer 15

There has been a tendency in many countries to invest in larger hospitals and health centres in order to achieve economies of scale, resulting in the closure of smaller hospitals and clinics. Thus the average person has to travel further to reach the nearest hospital.

Question 16

How have the location educational services changed?

Answer 16

Although primary schools have tended to remain local in character, secondary education is generally being provided in larger schools than in the past, increasing the distance between such schools, resulting in longer ‘journey to school times’. This has considerable implication for traffic congestion in cities.

Question 17

Define rural-urban fringe

Answer 17

It is an area of transition from agricultural and other rural land uses to urban use. It is characterised by mix of land uses, requiring a lot of space (e.g. golf courses, hospitals and colleges).

Question 18

What is the CBD?

Answer 18

The CBD is the commercial core of an urban area, which exhibits the highest land values. It is the focus of public transport systems and, in theory at least, the most accessible area in a city.

Question 19

Why CBDs have a vertical development?

Answer 19

A high level of accessibility results in high land values and rents, which in turn encourages vertical development.

Question 20

Describe the distribution of services in the CBD.

Answer 20

Major retailing and office functions dominate the core, alongside theatres, cinemas, restaurants, bars, hotels and key public buildings. Vertical zoning is often apparent, with retailing occupying lower floors and offices above.

Question 21

The high land values of the CBD result in…

what does … contrast with and why?

Answer 21

extremely low residential populations. This contrasts with the very high pedestrian flows recorded in CBDs. This is due to a combination of a large number of people attracted to the CBD to purchase goods/services and the large number of people who work there. For example, London’s CBD including Canary Wharf is home to around 1.5m jobs – one-third of London’s employment in just 2 per cent of London’s land space.

(links to traffic congestion)

Question 22

Using an example, what is a significant problem in CBDs?

Answer 22

Traffic congestion is a significant problem in CBDs. This makes the CBD the urban zone with most traffic restrictions. For example, in London, a congestion charge zone covers much of the CBD with motorists having to pay a £15 daily charge if within the zone.

Question 23

What are 3 factors influencing CBD decline?

Answer 23

-City centres may be perceived as dirty, unsafe, with an ageing environment and poor infrastructure. So, investors and businesses will be attracted to peripheral sites which have good access, pleasant environments and often lower costs.

-Online shopping and e-commerce has the potential to significantly impact traditional brick-and-mortar retail store in CBDs as consumers now have more options to shop online, leading to reduced foot traffic and declining sales in CBD retail districts.

Question 24

Using an example, explain how urban redevelopment can be a major factor in CBD change.

Answer 24

The redevelopment of London Docklands changes London’s CBD from a bi-nuclear entity (the West End and the City) to its current tri-nuclear form (West End, City, Canary Wharf).

Question 25

How can the operation of the housing market lead to residential segregation?

Answer 25

In many urban areas housing is in short supply. This results in high prices and overcrowding and at the lower end of the housing market in particular. Residential segregation tends to become more intense when housing is in short supply, with people of lower incomes gradually pushed out of desirable areas and into the ‘urban periphery’.

Question 26

How can the proportion of social housing affect residential segregation?

Answer 26

Where the proportion of social housing is significant, the way it is distributed in an urban areas has a major impact on residential segregation. For example, the grouping of social housing in distinct areas may result in ‘urban ghettos’/

Question 27

How can the culture be a strong determinant of residential segregation?

Answer 27

Income may allow people to live in certain areas, but if they do not feel comfortable in an area (e.g. due to ethnic tensions or a lack of cultural familiarity in the area) they will tend to avoid it.

Question 28

Gentrification…

Answer 28

invariably increases residential segregation.

Question 29

How does income affect where people live?

Answer 29

People on high incomes have a very wide choice of where to live. As housing is a very important factor in people’s lives, most people tend to live in the best houses and locations they can afford. In contrast, people on low incomes have very limited choice for houses and locations.

Question 30

How does ethnicity affect where people live?

Answer 30

People from particular ethnic groups tend to cluster together in particular areas, which are sometimes called ethnic enclaves. Examples of this include Chinatown in London and Jewish communities in Manhattan.

Question 31

How does age effect where people live?

Answer 31

The location and type of property people live in is often affected by age and family size. For example, young people often rent small flats; families with children often require more space and tend to buy the largest properties they can afford; older people, once their children have left home, often ‘trade down’ to a smaller property. As certain types of property tend to be in different areas, people often move from one area to another as their ‘life cycle’ progresses.